FreeFaller Posted July 31, 2015 Share Posted July 31, 2015 (edited) Hey TPR! I finally found some time to start my JAPAN trip report! It's super exciting to go through all the photos again and relive the trip! I can't wait to show you the Japan awesomeness we experienced during this amazing trip with Robb & Elissa! It's been a fun time hanging around with super cool people, riding roller coasters, experiencing Japanese culture and all in all just having fun! I can highly recommend visiting Japan one day if you're able to! It is just such a great cultural experience with all the food and different lifestyle going on over there! Just perfect! I try to update this thread on a regular basis, so keep an eye on this thread if you want to follow my adventure around Japan! As always, traveling usually means spending hours on a plane to another country! In my case, flying from Frankfurt to Tokyo Narita with a short layover in Amsterdam. My plane ticket was SUPER cheap: 470 Euros roundtrip!!! That was an incredible deal with KLM! Since I'm collecting Skymiles and KLM is one of the partner airlines, I was lucky enough to get more miles! YAYYYY! However, my travels to Japan were let's say a little complicated When I boarded the plane, I was super excited to finally take off to beautiful Japan, but OF COURSE I had bad luck! Shame on me! My flight from Frankfurt to Amsterdam had a huge delay (over 1 hour), because when we were about to take off (literally taking off) the plane suddenly stopped and we were standing on the runway for 30 minutes. Their system showed an error and they had to restart it. Hoooooray! How long could it take? We didn't know. As it couldn't get worse, one passenger got a panic attack and they had to call out a doctor. Thank god, there was one on board who could immediately help him. Even though, there was a lot going wrong, the crew did a great job calming people down. There was not such thing as panic on board which I really appreciated. After having restarted the system, we FINALLY took off and flew to Amsterdam where I had to find out that I got rebooked on a another flight to Shanghai and then to Tokyo! Instead of traveling 15 hours it now took me 31 hours!!! That was even longer than flying to crazy Australia in January! My life motto is ''Everything happens for a reason'' so I was like meh could be worse! At least I see the airport of Shanghai! Plus I got reimbursed and free drinks! So my next stop was the bar where I had some wine and some snacks. On my plane ride to Shanghai I got to know one Japanese guy who was on the exact same flight from Frankfurt to Amsterdam with the same destination: JAPAN! We talked a lot about the country and he gave me lots of tips what to eat etc. When we arrived in Shanghai, the odyssey hadn't been over yet! Waiting in front of a Chinese officer, looking at you like he would kill you in one second, because of not having a visa (I mean, I was just changing planes!), finding your luggage in the lost and found instead of in the baggage claim area, and justifying yourself for European hygiene products wasn't the best experience I could have gotten in China However, I had some great lunch: dumplings and fried chicken! What was really surprising, was the fact that we got a full meal on our flight from Shanghai to Japan! It was only a 3 hour flight and they served us dinner! Really cool! I was so happy when I finally arrived in Japan and ready to sleep! Now enough with the talking! Let's look at some photos of this crazy trip! Frankfurt airport! My 2nd home! Of course I'm eating Mc Donald's for breakfast! First flight: Frankfurt to Amsterdam! Boarding the plane of emergency stops! Somewhere over the Netherlands! This view looks nice! I love snacks on a plane! Finally in Amsterdam! First thing I need: WINE! Cheers guys! There a lot of people flying to Shanghai! We're going fast! We're flying high! LOOK! YAAAAAY for Chinese food! YUMMY! The food was actually not bad! Not even halfway there! :/ Flying and flying and flying! Somewhere over China! Big a$$ plane! Take the bus to the terminal! Welcome to Shanghai! Yup! This reminds you that you're in China now! Construction at the airport! HEY! Why is my luggage at Lost n' found?! Who wants to take this fast train?! Time for my next flight! But first, let me have some dumplings and... ...some fried chicken! Look! This company produces its items in my hometown! We got dinner on a 3 hour flight! It was really yummy! WELCOME TO JAPAN! THE BEST SIGN EVER! More welcome to Japan! Because 2 signs aren't enough! Welcome to Japan! In case you didn't know where I am! Final ''Welcome to Japan'' sign! I promise! Taking the Narita Express to Shinagawa! Saying goodbye to my new Japanese friend! Thanks for all your help! They're cleaning the trains SUPER FAST! Next station... ...TOKYO! First thing you see when you exit the station! The first hotel! Shinagawa Prince Hotel! Perfect location! These toilets have heating seats! WTF? Because Marcel needs more Mc Donald's after 31 hours of traveling! My view from the hotel! Be jealous! YAY for Japan having sparkling water! Edited September 1, 2015 by FreeFaller Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
FreeFaller Posted July 31, 2015 Author Share Posted July 31, 2015 I don't know how this ended up here Robb or Elissa, can you put it in the right thread? I'm sorry. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
robbalvey Posted July 31, 2015 Share Posted July 31, 2015 I don't know how this ended up here Robb or Elissa, can you put it in the right thread? I'm sorry. Done! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
FreeFaller Posted July 31, 2015 Author Share Posted July 31, 2015 Thank you Robb Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
DoinItForTheFame Posted July 31, 2015 Share Posted July 31, 2015 OMG!!! DUMPLINGS!!! This report wins already!!! Good photos so far! I'm looking forward to the next set of photos! Can't wait to see them!! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Nrthwnd Posted July 31, 2015 Share Posted July 31, 2015 Mmmm I miss the Shinagawa Prince Hotel. Wonderful place to stay in Tokyo. Did you get the chance to have the breakfast buffet there, any morning? It's really awesome with lots of western style and non- breakfast items to choose from. Great start to your trip report. Looking forward to seeing more of your trip there. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
_koppen Posted July 31, 2015 Share Posted July 31, 2015 Oh, this will be interesting! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
gerstlaueringvar Posted August 1, 2015 Share Posted August 1, 2015 That must've been a very memorable start. Can't wait to read more! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
FreeFaller Posted August 1, 2015 Author Share Posted August 1, 2015 (edited) Another day, another update of my amazing JAPAN trip guys! Today, I'm gonna show you Tobu Zoo in Minami Saitama Gun. Main reason to go there? One of the few Intamin Megalites! Even though I had just arrived the night before and slept for like 3 hours, I was ready to go and explore my very first theme park in Japan! It was the perfect start to an amazing trip with friends from all around the world! Robb & Elissa put together an awesome schedule for the day that included ERT on this airtime machine! Japan's Intamin representative Mr. Takashi joined us for the ERT and even rode with us which was super cool! Thanks heaps for that! What should I say about Kawasemi? It is an incredible good coaster which I wish more parks would buy! It is such a fun machine filled with airtime, twists and turns! Just perfect! The thing that I learned about Japanese parks is that they might not have the CRAZIEST roller coaster or thrill ride, but that's perfectly fine, because they have so many other things to offer that include zoos, dark rides, haunted houses (especially Haunted Houses where you get a candle!!!), ferris wheels (YUP, they're GIGANTIC!) and so much more that are well worth visiting the parks! I loved spending time with my friends exploring Japanese rides where I did not understand a single word, eating food that I hadn't seen before or just walking around and being impressed by the Japanese culture! It's hard to describe that with words, especially for me because English is my second language, but I hope that you guys understand what I'm talking about! That being said, Tobu Zoo (the name is telling you!) included a zoo with a bunch of different animals! No jokes! They also had a ferris wheel themed to cheese (Incredible, isn't it?) and VENDING MACHINES! Seriously, in my opinion this could be an own attraction at Japanese amusement parks! They're cheap and offer a bunch of different drinks that you've never seen before! You should pick random drinks even though you don't know what they are or might end up not liking them! That's part of the adventure. I must say that I absolutely loved the park and I was crazy enough to back there with friends that missed the pre trip add on. That's also why you see me wearing different shirts! Now let's see how this park looks like! Making our way to Tobu Zoo! Looks like we arrived! Read the information! Look at these crazy people! We got our wristbands and we're ready for the day! What a lift hill! Even Kristen can ride this Intamin! Awesome! YUMMY! Watch out! Birds are gonna steal you! GIANT ferris wheel! They don't know what they're in for! The teeth breaker! Gotta love Japanese signs! Regina is a little bitchy! Let's see what the zoo has to offer! WAAAAAAAAAAAA! Don't take photos! I want to eat! Interesting! Where is the Giant Ferris Wheel? I really can't see it! More animals! Just sleeping! You woke me up!!! I'm gonna kill you! Do you want to talk to the animals? He looks dangerous! They're just wandering around... ...being dirty! Ah I can see Regina from here! Ferris wheel themed to cheese! Kiddy credit! Those credit whores! It was really just a credit These cute monkeys! Soooo cute! Random photo of the park! Do you want to see more animals? They had... Zebras!!! And Giraffes! And Hippos! Hey guys, what's up? Nothing, just swimming! Beware! You're gonna get soaked! Or killed by this bear! He looks like he's gonna kill you! Who wants to buy her? You don't have to travel to Australia if you want to see... ...authentic... ...kangaroos! Or Aboriginals! What's wrong with me? Disney is everywhere! Can you see Big Thunder Mountain? Let's see if Regina is still cranky! She looks like it! Never seen those! Stop taking photos of me! Sorry Regina! But we need to! Group photo! Tobu Zoo from the cheese ferris wheel! YUUUUUUM! More Regina! In case you didn't know...it's TOBU ZOO! Welcome to Tobu Zoo! Mr. Takashi and Robb leading the way to... Regina is here! ...this beauty here! Intamin goodness! Let's go back to some Intamin goodness! Thumbs up for Kawasemi! Once you've ridden Regina, are you smiling or crying? Nicely themed wave swinger! An of course souvenir shops!!! Edited August 1, 2015 by FreeFaller Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
FreeFaller Posted August 1, 2015 Author Share Posted August 1, 2015 Part two! They had super delicious bears! Thad bought some of them! This is how they looked like! THAD DON'T EAT THEM! MARCEL, DON'T DO ANYTHING THAD IS DOING! DANGER! Nice skyline! Cheese ferris wheel! YUMMY! You can have some cheese here! Marcel, don't talk to the animals! See, you killed them! Snack time! Grape Fanta!!! This is how it usually looks like! This is how it looks like when TPR members are around! Disney is everywhere! Big Thunder Mountain! Vending machine credit! It was yummy! Let's end our day at Kawasemi! Thumbs up! Group photo! Another vending machine credit! This school bus was awesome! View from the cheese ferris wheel! INTAMIN! This monkey is so cute! HEY! DON'T TAKE PHOTOS OF ME! 100 Yen for feeding animals! Yummy! This is a REAL Penguin! YAAAAY! Thumbs up! Who are these two dudes? They're crazy! Kawasemi and me! We stopped at a Japanese grocery store! TPR members being fascinated by Japanese products! YUMMY! I'm gonna have a small cup of whiskey! Weird! Anybody up for this? More of it! YUMMY! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Mrlittle Posted August 1, 2015 Share Posted August 1, 2015 Mega lite!!! I'm glad you started a TR as well. I miss Japan. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Philrad71 Posted August 1, 2015 Share Posted August 1, 2015 Yay for another Marcel trip report! And yay for all of the food and beverage photos! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
DILinator Posted August 1, 2015 Share Posted August 1, 2015 I know this has been said other places, but a Mega-Lite like Kawasemi would be such a perfect, and sensible addition for Michigan's Adventure! Great pics, BTW! I was planning out a theoretical Japan-trip down the road, and I was thinking Tobu Zoo should probably be a stop. Definitely looks like it should be! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
FreeFaller Posted August 1, 2015 Author Share Posted August 1, 2015 Mmmm I miss the Shinagawa Prince Hotel. Wonderful place to stay in Tokyo. Did you get the chance to have the breakfast buffet there, any morning? It's really awesome with lots of western style and non- breakfast items to choose from. Great start to your trip report. Looking forward to seeing more of your trip there. I had breakfast there! Everything about this hotel is just awesome! As you said, they offer so many breakfast items to choose from! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Nrthwnd Posted August 1, 2015 Share Posted August 1, 2015 Mmmm my first Megalite. And foreign food shops are always interesting to browse through. But be careful what you buy. You may not like 'it.' Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
gisco Posted August 1, 2015 Share Posted August 1, 2015 Japan = awesome Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Gearhart Posted August 2, 2015 Share Posted August 2, 2015 Kawasemi was awesome but the zoo part was just depressing. That was the first place I did the whole "let's get this random drink in the vending machine and hope it doesn't kill me" game haha!! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
gerstlaueringvar Posted August 2, 2015 Share Posted August 2, 2015 Great update! Tobu Zoo is quite a memorable experience with two pretty solid coasters. Regina is kinda bitchy but still gives some quality air. That haunted house with the flower basket is pretty well-done, especially that scare actor at the end. Every park needs a Mega-Lite! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
FreeFaller Posted August 3, 2015 Author Share Posted August 3, 2015 Hey TPR I hope you're as excited about the next update as I am! It's time for Nasu Highland today! I didn't know what to expect. I had no idea which coasters or rides this park would have so EVERY ride was a big surprise for me! First of all, I LOVED Nasu Highland! It was one of these very traditional Japanese style theme parks that I was looking for the most: Colorful, many crazy rides and coasters! While they might not have the BEST coasters, this park had so many other great rides to offer! They had Big Boom (I LOVED it!), a nearly vertical drop coaster, the track of which is right next to the trees. Their brake system consists of tires, isn't that crazy? Absolutely amazing! They also had one of these wooden mazes that seemed to be really big in Japan since we saw them in many other Japanese theme parks! The park was super clean like everything else in this country! Seriously, you wouldn't find many trash cans, because people just don't litter that much!!! Really awesome. They also had a really bad SLC (which SLC isn't bad?!), and a spinning coaster! I just loved spending time at this park. We had a great time and I would definitely go back, especially with TPR! We're having a good time everywhere, don't we?! This park is also home of the world famous ''We're on a log flume'', so this should be reason enough to go back there! That being said, let's look at some photos! Smallest escalator I've ever seen! Shinkansen kiss!!! ANDREW! You're in the wrong lane!!! Okay, can you take the other group of crazy people? This taxi driver seemed to be approved by his country! The middle of nowhere! Driving on the left side! The view looks awesome! Anybody want to bungee jump? You sure we're right? We are! Welcome to Nasu Highland! People getting ready for the day! This park looks beautiful! I can see... ...VENDING MACHINES! Good morning Tokyo! Let's get some snacks for the train ride! TPR members wondering if they're in the right lane! Priscilla as always going too far! Hey sweetheart! Take us to Nasu Highland! YUMMY! This chicken sandwich was absolutely amazing! We're wristbanded up and ready for the day! Park map selfie! SCARY! These cars look interesting! Beautiful entrance! They also had a GIANT ferris wheel! Can you see it? Look how colorful this park is! First coaster: Bat Flyer! I can see another coaster! People getting on! Is it comfortable? Don't get naughty guys! Andrew prefers being single! Looks like a fun ride! Very interesting lift hill! They also had a GIANT juke box! Hey Marcel! Don't steal the car! Look at this dude! He's guarding the park! How many coater tracks can you see? Corkscrew was closed, but it didn't matter! Stop taking selfies! At least you're not using a selfie stick! This is how you ride! Spinning coaster! Big BOOM! Loko at that loop! You're this tall? Once again... BIG BOOM! Look how close the trees are to the coaster track! Who needs regular brakes when you can have tires? Another credit! Step in and... ...DIE! Adequate roller coaster outfit? Business clothes and high heels! Coastertrack! That drop looks steep! Welcome to 'Merica! Who wants a GIANT burger? They also had cars where you could dine in! Group photo! YUMMY! Hey look! They're on a log flume! Drop Tower! Traditional flat rides! Let's go to the pirate ship! YAAAY! Let's do the observation ride! Awesome flat ride! This view *_* The setting of the park is awesome! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
FreeFaller Posted August 3, 2015 Author Share Posted August 3, 2015 Part 2! Happy Marcel! Hey guys! This view! Breathtaking! What's up? Rides wherever you look! Hello from Nasu Highland! Traditional carousel These guys are just hanging around! This looks... ...PAINFUL! Literally, FRIGHT! Even these people looked scared! What's this? The rapid river! GIANT Ferris Wheel! Painful SLC! Thumbs up for the rapid river! Not too wet! Even Yin approves of this water ride! MARCEL! DON'T GET EATEN BY THE JAPANESE MONSTER! Souvenir shop! MARCEL, stop acting gay! I love wave swingers! Hello! Thumbs up for Big Boom! Don't be scared! Those guys are on a log flume! We as well! GIANT ferris wheel selfie! Food time! Fries in a box! Welcome to Japan, where you can buy cigarettes next to Lego items! I'm a lion! Monorail POV! This park is super photogenic! Absolutely cool! Even Germany is represented! They also had a roller coaster game! POV! I have a hand full of Japanese mascots! DOn't I look fancy? ARGH! Time to leave! Marcel, is that you?! Rush hour! Hey guys! Let's cuddle! It was like 10pm and still crowded! Let's find some... YAKITORI!!! YUMMY! Meat on a stick! YAKITORI fight! Look at all this food! Marcel approved! Random statue! Good night Tokyo! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Mrlittle Posted August 3, 2015 Share Posted August 3, 2015 Great update. Nasu Highland was the one park we missed from the trip. Definitely will have to check it out on our next visit. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
boldikus Posted August 3, 2015 Share Posted August 3, 2015 As usual great report so far Marcel, with some fantastic photos. I think you might be the happiest TPR boarder alive. Kawasemi looks amazing, I want to ride all of the megalites! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
The Great Zo Posted August 4, 2015 Share Posted August 4, 2015 Great start to the report, Marcel! I agree -- Nasu Highland is the most colorful park I've ever seen. Even the SLC looks cheery and bright. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
DILinator Posted August 4, 2015 Share Posted August 4, 2015 I love how colorful it all is! Cedar Point could definitely learn a lesson from Nasu Highland's coaster color differentiation! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Nrthwnd Posted August 4, 2015 Share Posted August 4, 2015 Marcel, did the monorail still tip and tilt at various points of it's route? When I rode it, I thought the thing was about to fall off it's rail! And did you get a chance to take care of your tired feet, in their Foot Pond? Or was it not there, anymore? It looked like Miso Soup to me, lol. Great park, with more colours than I ever imagined, everywhere. Great shots that you took of Nasu Highland! Thanks for sharing them. Big Mike in the Foot Pond at Nasu Highland. TPR 2011 Japan Tour. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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